The Madman of Venice by Sophie Masson

Author:Sophie Masson [Masson, Sophie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Missing persons -- Investigation -- Fiction, Witchcraft -- Fiction, Mystery and detective stories, Missing persons -- Fiction, Missing persons -- Investigation, Venice (Italy) -- Fiction, Venice (Italy) -- History -- 1508-1797 -- Fiction, Italy -- Venice, Venice (Italy) -- History -- 17th century -- Fiction
ISBN: 9780385738439
Publisher: New York : Delacorte Press
Published: 2010-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

Murano

Dr Leone soon found a boatman who would take Ned to the mainland within half an hour. There wasn’t enough time for Ned to go back to Dr Leone’s house, so the alchemist gave him some money for the boat trip, the horse at the other end, and some food. After making Ned solemnly swear that he’d leave Venice, he rowed away with Henri. It was clear he had thought of some line of enquiry and was determined to go and pursue it at once, unencumbered by Ned.

Left alone, Ned paced around the quay, waiting for the

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boatman to be ready and too annoyed to even think about eating. He wished he hadn’t sworn to go. Every instinct told him he shouldn’t. After all, Master Ashby was his master, Celia’s father, and Mistress Quickly’s brother; Dr Leone was only Master Ashby’s friend. It wasn’t right to run away when his master was in danger. I must think of something—and fast, thought Ned.

The quay was crowded with sailors and porters, who were much too busy to pay any attention to him. He wandered amongst them, trying to think of a plan. Could he perhaps go and come back almost at once? Dr Leone hadn’t said anything about that; he’d just made Ned promise to go. If Ned did that, though, he couldn’t go back to the alchemist’s house, or to Henri’s. He’d have to hide somewhere. And he didn’t have enough money to rent a room. He turned out his pockets and looked at all the money he had, including what Dr Leone had given him. He judged he had enough to survive for a few days, anyway, if he was very careful and slept in doorways or under bridges. His heart raced. He’d never done this before. He’d always had a roof over his head. But it seemed the right thing to do.

Yes, he thought excitedly. That's exactly what I'll do. I'll leave Venice—that is, I'll get the boatman to take me not to the mainland, but to the closest island in the lagoon — Murano, isn't it? You can see it from Cannaregio's northern quays. Then I'll get a Murano boatman to take me back to Cannaregio. That won't cost much. . . . And I can

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hide somewhere in that district, and try to somehow speak to the Count on his own . How ; I don't know . But I have to try, at least .

At first, the boatman was a little surprised that Ned wanted to go to Murano and not the mainland, but when Ned explained, with lots of gestures, that he’d be paid exactly the same, he brightened. It was obviously rather more than a trip to Murano was worth.

They reached Murano very quickly and Ned tipped the boatman an extra coin, putting a finger to his lips as he did so. ‘Ragazza , 3 he said, remembering the word for ‘girl,’ and the stories he’d heard of Venetian gallantry, and hoping the boatman would get the message that he’d sneaked off to meet a girl in Murano.

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